The Windham County reformer. (Battleboro, Vt.) 1876-1897, 1887-04-01
The True Principles of Taxation.

! The federal power Of taxation Is almost un
! crcumscribed. Ii must be "for the genera
welfare," not for partial or class benefit
Exports cannot be taxed. Direct taxes mus,
| cording 10 their population Indirect take
| must lie uni ,0rm throughout the United states
These include "all duties, imposts and excuses,
| which are, though advanced by the home pre-
| duccr or the importing merchant, alike actually
paid by the final consumer
| Our experi1 nee Of the difficulty and incQuali
| ties of the direct tax when applied to land, oil
which square foot In one place is costlier
| than 100 miles square In another place, and in
| proportion to popu ation, which varies in den
sity now and changes continually; Or when
| applied to Individual incomes fthe most direct
tax conceivable, for when paid it cannot be
shif'ed-it has no repercusSioD, which is the
only common feature of the taxes held to be
direct before war had disturbed tue vision OF
| courts and legislatures) under the prescribed
rule of apporiionment to the sta:eslaccOrding 10
population, confines their utility 10 state pur
poses, and excludes them from the jIst pur-
view of federal taxation
II Is indirect taxes only which the federal
government now leyies, and to which, being
thus practically restricted by those provisions
of the constitution, it must ! ok for its reye-
nues, and its remissioDs when revenue Outruns
expense 1t is out OF indirect taxes that arise
contentious about protection and free trade, as
they arose before the war wben our debt was
little and our expense SO small that many
though. congress might hava abolished custom
houses, and no harm.
Free trade" accurately describes tie Internal
commerce Of our states. 1t app'i,S 10 tie CON-
merce one with another, OF no other great and
sovereign states. 1t does not apply TO nrirade
IT'D foreign nations. No NJ IN nov living will
ever see "trce trade" adopted by thete uai'ed
States IN ;leir commerce with foreign nations;
for t-x:s On imports, from the foundation o
this government, have ever betn one chief
source Of federal revenue, and such they will
continue 10 be. They are taxes upon consump-
ton like cur internal revenue taxes. ard The
true q round Of choice pmong articles suitable
for taxation Is not the Circumstance that they
are produced at home or imported from ahrosc,
for neither the producer nor the importer hnally
pays the tax. The consumer pays ii. The
place OF orisiu Is no criterion. The place OF
collection is no criterion. The place OF Coz
sumption is where duties as well rs excise are
PAID al las; seaport taxes and inland tax 3 are
alike In cos, of collection {3 10 and 6 10 per
cent?, and alike In this, that although the i'm
por CT or dis.illcr advances the tax, he REIN
burses himself in The price 10 tho consumer,
who alone is taxed. The true ground OF cho'c C,
is ttatsmong ell articles thus consumed within |
our own borders soma are batter suited for an |
equitable taxation than others. Tbey are uni !
versaiy consumed, like sugar, or easily i+enii- |
ii 3D. like cCifec, or their cOnsump ption Elsy be |
safely impedeo like distilled, spirits. or fer |
mented liquors or tobacco, or they are lnXu- |
ufes, like wines silks and diamonds. Bat of |
these articles suitable ior taxation, foreign pro-
dGcti0u eff ,rGs as many IS home producnon, !
or moie. Taxes en- imports are levied by all |
nations Ilst wear England rsbed |
revenue OF S9J 9.2 :'S3 from lax 5 on mnorts; /
France. SGS,6l6 81; Germany, siT551, l60.
But no foreign ialiJn taxes raw Ipaierials
Sheh t.xes III IRE home industries, III which |
hCs, ma eria 8 Grc worked up and increased IN
value by ONE lator. Snch taxes on raw ma
eras, instead OF excluding foreign comseiiiicn
rem the home market, put cur own employers
1f labor 1T great disadvantage in the home
market, and 4 eater disadvantage in every
OIeign market, compared with the foreigner
,mplo, ing labor upon untaxed raw materials.
Protection" is also misnumer it Implies |
pperiority elsewhere. That superiority over
my great Industry of ours does not tx s, upon
be giobe. IL implies infants here aB! adults
sew here. Such ia rot our reputation. IL im-
,fes that fIGid competition universal, where
be tt'est survive, We shall perish. Bat it is
very where else believed that whenever We
hail release ourselves from bad laws and enter
hat competition uumanaeed, rivals will be dis
aGced and our prmacy estab ished Ia tue mar
tets and commerce OF the world.
Such Is also ms own belief, making aGw-
ices for these misleading ferns OF speech
ghica we seem Obliged TO use, hat which state
ndusirisl intercourse in tcrns OF military
trife Il is a mist4ke TO conceive it 30. In
gerike encounters one msy gain what en0'l er
cses, but on the whole, in industrial intercourse
We V desired exchange Is profitable 10 both
aIiies, aud this relation Cf things exhibits TIE
aturc Of property, ard is q corner stone of so
ietv-lFrom Secretary Daniel Mauning'S ,
,lst Annual Report. -l